National —
The Thai Health Ministry will reportedly propose reclassifying the entire nation into relaxed zone designations and restore normal nightlife operating closing hours to the Center for Covid-19 Situation (CCSA) in the upcoming meeting on June 17th.
Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul revealed today, June 16th, that the Ministry of Public Health would propose a nationwide color-rezoning into the green zone or the surveillance zone to the CCSA in the upcoming meeting tomorrow June 17th. The proposal, according to the minister, was already put into the meeting agenda.
When questioned about petitions from nightlife operators to revert the legal closing hours to pre Covid-19 hours, the minister answered that he had consulted this issue with Dr. Kiattipoom Wongrachit, Health Ministry Permanent-Secretary, and Dr. Opas Karnkawinpong, Director-General of the Disease Control Department. Both agreed to extend the closing hours by another 1-2 hours, which meant nightlife places could open until around 2 a.m. based on their current closing hours at midnight, as long as the remainder of the CCSA agreed.
“The extension is fine as long as the nightlife places follow the rules and do not open overnight until dawn,” Minister Anutin said “However, it still depends on the CCSA.”
He went on about proposals on lifting the public mask mandate, saying that wearing a mask has become a social norm, and that the Health Ministry would not consider canceling it soon. However, the ministry would be lenient about the mask mandate in certain facilities, according to the minister.
Finally, the minister commented on the suggestion to drop the Covid-19 alert-level to level 2 (low and decreasing transmission), saying everything was already in control, and Thailand was doing a great job.
“The currently decreasing new cases, casualties, bed occupancy rates, and ventilated cases are the result of everyone’s cooperation,” Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul concluded although he did not reveal the change about the alert-level.
TPN notes that currently 46 provinces are in the red zone (high transmission), 14 in the green zone (surveillence), and 17 in the blue zone (tourism).
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